The present invention relates generally to a new and improved landscape edging device which is employed to define a border between adjacent earth surfaces, such as between a lawn and a garden, and more particularly to such a device employed in combination with a polymer sheet of the type employed at the base of a garden bed to retard the growth of unwanted vegetation. The invention also relates to a new and improved method for employing such a device alone or in combination with such a polymer sheet.
The prior art contains several devices employed as lawn edging or borders between lawns and gardens. The prior art also contains various means for anchoring such edging or borders to the ground, such as U.S. Pat. No. 4,846,655, issued to Gulley on Jul. 11, 1989. However, each of the prior art devices have been found wanting in one or more particulars. Specifically, installation of the devices consisted of a difficult and time-consuming burial process. First, a trench had to be dug in the shape of the border. The edging or border had to then be placed in the trench. Next, the anchoring means had to be employed. Finally, the trench had to be backfilled to partially bury the edging or border.
In addition to being a time-consuming and labor-intensive process which typically required more than one person, the installed edging or border devices routinely were forced out of the ground by frost heaves or external sources such as lawn mowers and pedestrians. Consequently, the difficult and time-consuming installation process had to be repeated at regular time intervals, requiring that the trench be redug during each reinstallation.
The present invention represents recent innovations in the art which overcome the drawbacks of the prior art by combining polyvinylchloride pipe with conventional anchor means. In addition, improved installation methods obviate the need to redig the trench during reinstallation.